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Wallpapering Preparation Instructions

Wallpaper Preparation

Wallpapering a room enhances the beauty and individuality of your home. Depending on the detail in the pattern that you choose, your wallpaper may hide uneven walls. As much as wallpaper can enhance your room, it is important that you prepare your walls for your wallpapering effort, as hasty preparation will result in poor adhesion of the paper and a non-professional look. Not the result you want after spending your valuable time-off wallpapering!

Overview

The prep work that you do before hanging wallpaper will depend on the type of wall surface that exists in your room and to what extent you want to clean the surface. First, you should turn off the electricity to the room as you will be working with a good deal of water. We recommend that you remove any existing wallpaper before hanging new paper. However, you may successfully hang new wallpaper on old paper if you do not have more than an existing layer or two, by repairing any defects. If you have plastered or painted walls, be sure that you repair any defects in the walls and smooth it as much as possible before beginning to hang your wallpaper.

Turn Off Electricity

Before you begin this project, be sure that you turn off electricity to all outlets and switches at your panel box for the room you are wallpapering. After you remove all outlet covers and switch covers from the wall, tape over your outlets with electric tape to keep water from entering them.

Remove Old Wallpaper

We recommend that you remove any old wallpaper in a room to make a clean finish. You can remove old wallpaper relatively easily by first cutting horizontally across your wallpaper about every eight inches. After you have cut across the paper, lightly sandpaper the wallpaper to improve water saturation in the next step. Thoroughly wet the sanded paper with a sponge and household detergent. Keep in mind that you may have to wet the old wallpaper with a significant amount of water to saturate it sufficiently. The more saturated the paper is, the easier it will be to scrape off. Next use a putty knife to gently scrape the paper off the walls using the cut marks as starting points. Be careful not to push too hard and damage the wall underneath.

Repair Old Wallapaper

Although it is not recommended, you do not need to remove your old wallpaper. If you choose to wallpaper over existing wallpaper sand down overlapping seams on the wallpaper as these will show through your new wallpaper. 100-150 grit sandpaper should do the trick. Glue down any curled edges, wipe off excess glue with a sponge and sandpaper to smooth the existing crease. If you have bubbles in the wallpaper or other defects you will need to make them level with the rest of your wall. Cut an X with your utility blade on the lose wallpaper. Then, pull up and paste the wallpaper and reattach to the wall. Sponge off any excess paste and be sure to smooth out any creases or separated seams with sandpaper.

Repair Paint and Plaster Defects

If the wall that you are wallpapering has no existing wallpaper, your preparatory effort may be less involved. You should be sure to repair any cracks or holes in plaster with plaster patching. To make sure you work is smooth, sandpaper the patch after it has dried, so that your repair work does not show through the new paper.

Repair Paint and Plaster Defects

For painted surfaces you should remove any peeling or blistering paint from the surface of your walls with a putty knife, and then sandpaper all the areas where paint is missing so that the area is smooth and level. Walls that are painted with a glossy or semi-glossy finish should be dulled. Go over the entire surface of your walls with sandpaper so that the wallpaper adheres properly. Wash the walls down with a strong household detergent to remove any existing dust from the sandpapering. After you have allowed the wall to dry, you are ready to wallpaper your room! Move on to the Wallpapering Basics tutorial!